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Cragganmore 12 Year Old

Cragganmore was built in 1869 at Ballindalloch in Speyside. The distillery was founded by one John Smith, who chose the location for it’s excellent water supply and proximity to the Strathspey Railway.

The Railway was built in 1863, following a lengthy campaign by local land and business owners, eager to enjoy all the benefits a rail connection to the south would bring. The line connected Perth to Inverness, passing through Aviemore, Grantown-on-Spey and Forres along the way. This new service was to become hugely advantageous to the regions thriving whisky industry with raw ingredients, fuel and casks delivered by rail, and mature spirit carried off to the blenders in the central belt.

Distillers saw their businesses flourish but the railway line wasn’t so lucky and was eventually closed down in 1968, following a massive restructuring project at British Railways. It lay dormant until a group of rail enthusiasts got together in 1971 to form the Strathspey Railway Company. In the years that followed, significant time and effort went into preserving the line and by 1978, trains were running again, travelling from Aviemore to Broomhill with plans in place to extend to Grantown-on-Spey.

The days of the railway supplying Cragganmore may be a thing of the past but the distillery continues to thrive regardless. Though perhaps not as well known as some of it’s Speyside neighbours, Cragganmore remains a highly regarded single malt, highly prized by blenders and noted for it’s complexity.

Today Cragganmore is owned by Diageo with just two official bottlings available: the 12 year old and the Distiller’s Edition. The 12 year old is widely available and serves as the Speyside Representative in the Classic Malts range.

Smell: Classic speyside on the nose, Green Fruits like Apples and Pears, Lemon and Lime with Vanilla, Toffee and Biscuit.

A good example of the traditional Speyside character which, despite it’s position in Diageo’s Classic Malts range, remains somewhat overshadowed by it’s more famous neighbours. A little unfair in my eyes, as this 12 year old malt stands up extremely well against similarly priced Speyside alternatives.